Overview
This guide will explain why the Ambush gamemode is my personal favorite, as well as how to actually play it. I’ve seen one too many VIPs run ahead of their team and get wasted by an AKM, and then yell at their team for not providing backup. Since I couldn’t find any detailed guides on Ambush, I decided to create one!EDIT: This is also designed to help out the massive number of new players (due to recent sales) who want to become better Ambush players.
Change Log
1-27-16: Published guide.
1-28-16: Added “Killing The VIP” section /w screenshots. Added some more VIP Tips.
1-29-16: Added “Map-Specific Tactics” and added Siege, Tell, and Station /w screenshots. Added more VIP Tips. Changed, “How To Know You’re The VIP” to “How To Identify The VIP” and added pictures from the Insurgency Wiki.
1-30-16: Added a few more VIP Tips.
1-31-16: Added a quote from Deus Ex to “How To Identify the VIP” because I thought it was funny. Added in-game voiceover descriptions for both VIPs to “How To Identify The VIP”.
2-2-16: Added Verticality and Market to “Map-Specific Tactics”.
2-20-16: Added headers to “Map-Specific Tactics”. They look cool :p
12-6-17: Tweaking a few sections here and there; adding more map-related information (about time).
5-29-18: Moved the VIP info about having an extra shot loaded as another way to tell if you’re VIP. Also damn I’ve been inactive on this.
1-18-20: General clarity improvements. I actually added a proper description of Ambush for four years lmao. Currently in an Army barracks with nothing to do for a while so I’m coming back to this guide and polishing it up a bit.
What Is Ambush?
Ambush is a single-life VIP gamemode where the defending team needs to protect their VIP at all costs. The defending team wins if the VIP captures an extraction point or if all attackers are eliminated, while the attacking team wins by assassinating the VIP or by preventing the VIP from reaching an extraction point until the time runs out.
Ambush requires players to be smart. One screwup in Push and you might lose an objective. One screwup in Ambush and you might lose the entire round. While gamemodes like Push can last up to 10-15 minutes, a round of Ambush can end in twenty seconds:
Identifying The VIP
(NOTE: If you don’t want to be the VIP, you can go into Settings -> Game Settings -> VIP Preference and then set it to Never. If you do want to be the VIP, you can set it to Prioritize. It’s set to Indifferent by default.)
“Don’t tell me, you’re going to wear those sunglasses during a night operation.” – Anna Navarre
Here are some indicators that tell you when you’re the VIP:
-> You will only have a silenced pistol (M9/Makarov) with a flashlight and a knife (on night maps you also receive Night Vision Goggles and a Flare Gun).
-> You can’t reload your pistol when you spawn in. Both VIPs get an extra bullet loaded in the chamber automatically, similar to shotguns.
-> You will have the enemy team’s melee weapon. The Security VIP gets a Gurkha and the Insurgent VIP gets the KA-BAR (simply called the “Knife” in-game).
-> You won’t be able to change your current loadout via resupplying.
-> You’re wearing black gloves. You might need to switch your equipped weapon for this to show. For example, if you han an M9 equipped the round before, and you get picked to be the Security VIP, it may not update and it might look like you’re still wearing tan gloves until you switch weapons.
-> When the round starts, the game will tell you that you are the VIP.
You’ll also want to know what the VIP looks like, whether you’re defending him or trying to eliminate him.
Security VIP – “Dark Clothing and Sunglasses”
Insurgent VIP – “White-Black Shemagh, Sunglasses, White Shirt and Jeans”
If you’re on the side defending the VIP, he’ll show up as an an orange marker, both on the Tactical Map and on your HUD.
How To Not Die As VIP
When the round starts, the game will also tell you this:
This gets a lot of new VIPs killed. Having the VIP move with the team puts him in danger, and while escorting the VIP to the extraction point is one way to win, you can also win by simply eliminating the enemy team.
Moving with your teammates can work, of course. However, your team needs to be pushing pretty aggresively; otherwise, you’re prone to being flanked and shot in the rear. Rushing the map can also be a viable tactic. Rushing can catch the enemy off guard and yield a quick victory, but it’s always a risky move.
If you don’t want to push, you should find a good spot to hide in. Sit a spot that offers good concealment or is otherwise out of the way (i.e. a spot enemies won’t even think to look) or a spot you can defend from approaching hostiles (i.e. a staircase in a building or a doorway). If you want to assist in killing enemies flanking around the map, a spot with both concealment and good line-of-sight is ideal. This is one spot I like in particular that offers a strong combination of both:
While this spot is heavily exposed, it works well because very few people check this spot or even knows it exists. Meanwhile, if an enemy runs by I can just ruin his day with my M9, and he probably won’t figure out where I am even while I’m shooting him.
You can have teammates camp back with you, but keep in mind that this can give your position away, causing the enemy to converge on your position. I’ve died as the VIP more than once in this way.
Sit back for at least two minutes. I typically start moving to an extraction point at about 2:30, or halfway into the round. In the best case scenario, your teammates have already killed all the enemies, while you sit in your hiding spot. Otherwise, if you have some teammates still alive, have them move with you if they’re nearby.
In the worst case scenario, you’re all by yourself. It’s still possible to win, however. While eliminating the enemy team can work, clearing an extraction point and then capping it is usually your best bet.
Don’t Hug The VIP
As a teammate, you don’t need to babysit the VIP to make sure he’s alright. Just go out there and get some kills! On most maps, the VIP can find a good hiding spot and doesn’t need any protection (with the exceptions of maps like Siege, where some teammates definitely need to protect the VIP). If you do want to help defend the VIP, get a suppressed gun so you don’t give away the VIP’s hiding spot.
If you haven’t killed everyone, try to clear out a path to an extraction point to make escorting the VIP easier and safer. Ideally, have one or two teammates sit on the point in question when the rest run back to the VIP. Then, escort the VIP to the extraction point while the teammates on the point keep it clear.
Always try to eliminate all hostiles, however, unless you only have a few people left. Eliminating the enemy team is the most risk-free way to win a round.
Defending Team / VIP Tips
-> If you’re going to go AFK for a bit, switch to Spectator. You’re not going to help your team if you’re standing in spawn as the VIP, and you’ll probably die since most people check your spawn anyway.
-> Consider setting your VIP Preference to Never until you have a good understanding of the maps. Map knowledge is crutial to your success as the VIP.
-> This should be common sense, but whenever you’re moving with your team as the VIP, do not lead. You can’t blame your team for you getting shot unless you outlive your team (AKA you were the last man standing). I doubt that you can take on 12 bad guys with a pistol firing standard ammo.
-> As the VIP, don’t try to hunt down or chase any enemies you happen to see. Just report their location and let your teammates do that, so you don’t put yourself in danger.
-> As the VIP, don’t look out windows. You have a death wish if you do.
-> When moving up with your teammates, keep a fair distance (about 20 feet) between you and the leading teammate, just in case he gets shot down. Otherwise, if you’re right behind him and an enemy shoots your friend, you’re going to die by the same bullet. You also don’t want to be in the very back unless it’s only you and one teammate left.
-> Whenever you’re with your team, watch your back. You’re more likely to die from a shot that came behind you than a shot from the front, which is the direction your other teammates should be watching.
- The last five tips could really just be summed up to “use your teammates as bait”. After all, the VIP is more important than the rest of the team. That being said, if you’re the last man alive as the VIP, there’s no reason to play it safe since you don’t have teammates covering you anymore. In fact, in that scenario, pulling some really dumb sh*t (like rushing the middle of thee map) actually isn’t the worst idea as it might throw your enemy off.
-> When crouched and aiming down sights, you make no footstep noise. You also make no footstep noise if you’re walking (“Alt” by default, but I changed it to “V” because for me it was easier to hit). Use this to get the jump on people and make sure that they don’t get the jump on you.
-> In most cases, the Security team has the VIP.
- The maps that the Insurgent team has the VIP are Tell, Tell Night, and Siege.
-> As the VIP, your pistol is pretty decked out, and comes with a flashlight and a suppressor.
- Your pistol uses standard ammo, not HP or AP. If you surprise someone from a flank, consider aiming for their head (instant kill), their arms (instant kill), or their legs (kills in two shots).
- Assuming you’re shooting an enemy at 50 feet or less, shooting the torso of someone with Heavy Armor can take up to ten shots. Someone with Light Armor will go down in 3 shots to the torso. Someone without armor requires 1-2 torso shots.
- As the VIP, you get an additional four magazines for your pistol, totaling 76 bullets.
- The flashlight you acquire on your pistol can be a powerful tool. It can help you see in dark areas and can blind enemies, making it hard for them to return fire. Don’t keep it on when going around corners, however, because enemies can see your beam and can get ready to instantly shoot you.
- The supressor on your pistol works wonders. It hides your muzzle flash and dampens your gunshot sounds. At medium to long range, you can shoot someone down and they won’t even know where you are if you’re concealed. Remember, stealth is your ally.
- The Insurgent VIP’s Makarov comes with an Extended Magazine attachment, which increases your map size to 15 per magazine instead of the default 8, putting it on par with the Security VIP’s M9.
-> When aiming down sights for both pistols, the bullet is going to land at the top of the middle sight. This might surprise people using the M9, because the bullet does not land on the white dot on the middle sight.
- Weapons in this game are realistically accurate. If you can read the sights on your pistol, you can accurately shoot an enemy out to about 50 meters, or about 160 feet, which is pretty damn far. Shooting someone at medium-long range is a viable option. Due to the suppressor, they’ll also have no clue where you are.
-> The bayonet or kukri you have as the VIP (which you have regardless of class or loadout anyway) does 60 damage to an enemy if they’re facing you, but from behind it deals 200, killing an enemy in one hit. If you’re feeling particularly ballsy or if you just want to BM someone, you can give it a shot.
- If two enemies are next to each other, you can actually knife both of them with the same swing.
-> You can pick up primary weapons of fallen teammates or enemies by pressing your use key (“F” by default). You only get the magazine currently loaded in the gun, however, and there is virtually no way to determine how much ammunition is still left in the gun until it runs dry. In other words, if the gun only has a few bullets left, you won’t know until you shoot them off. This can get you killed if you’re unlucky.
- Also, be careful when you go to pick up a weapon. I’ve seen a lot of VIPs die while trying to pick up a weapon off of the ground. If you do want to pick up a weapon, just be quick about it.
-> Both VIPs get armor. The difference is that the Security VIP gets Heavy Armor, while the Insurgent VIP gets Light Armor, making the Insurgent VIP easier to kill.
-> Avoid standing out in the open. Try to stay in cover at all times. When you do have to move in the open (for example, the main street on Siege), sprint. It makes you a harder target for snipers.
- After sprinting for a moment (1.2 seconds according to the Insurgency Wiki), you can slide by hitting your crouch key(s). This makes you move a bit faster and gives you a lower profile. However, when the slide ends, you lose all of your forward speed for a moment. This can give an enemy sniper a clear shot, so only slide if you’re going to get to cover or reach the extraction point when it’s over.
-> You can check the in-game map (“N” by default) to see what teammates are left alive and where they are. You’ll want to advance through the map by taking the route your teammates have already cleared. For example, if you see on the map that six of your teammates are in the bunker on Station, you can probably assume it’s safe to take that route to get to one of the extraction points.
-> Normally, you can only see the HUD markers of your teammates if they’re in your squad (shown by a green diamond), unless you have a direct visual (shown by a blue diamond). When you’re the VIP, however, you see the HUD markers of all of your teammates of both squads at all times.
Attacking Team Tips
It’s the attacking team’s job to eliminate the VIP; here are some tips on how exactly to do that.
-> If you see the VIP, shoot him. He’s worth more points than his teammates (because he’s considered an enemy objective) and gives you an instant win. Killing his teammates can help with killing the VIP, but if you got the shot on him, take it. Probably sounds obvious, but some players focus on other enemies while the VIP is in sight and I don’t know why.
-> The Security VIP has Heavy Armor, so he can take a couple torso hits before dying, and can even survive an AP round from an assault rifle if he gets hit in the stomach. The Insurgent VIP only has Light Armor, however, and will go down in one AP round to his torso, regardless of weapon or caliber.
-> Let’s say you’re camping a spot like this:
-> Seriously consider the above bullet if you’re the last man left. Shooting his bodyguards may get you killed, and if you don’t die, the VIP will take a different route to bypass or flank you.
-> Rocket launchers, C4, and IEDs are unobtainable in Ambush; frag grenades still exist, however. If you think the VIP is in a room, take a frag and hold it for a couple seconds, and then just chuck it into the room.
- While on the subject of frags (if you want to mess around a bit), if you suspect that the VIP is camping a room with some teammates, pull the pin out of a fragmentation grenade and hold it while walking into the room. The resulting explosion will probably kill everyone inside that room. As long as you kill the VIP with the frag grenade, your death was worth it. Yelling, “ALLAHU AKBAR!” into your microphone is not necessary, but it makes for some good laughs.
- I’ve recently discovered that once you start a grenade throw, you can hold your interact key (“F” by default) and then let go of your original throwing key (either Left, Right, or Middle Mouse by default) and you’ll still be holding the grenade. This allows you to jump and sprint while holding a primed grenade. Release your interact key to throw, or just suicide sprint using this tactic. This tip also works in Day of Infamy.
-> The Security VIP’s Heavy Armor can be a b*tch sometimes. If you’re a sniper, consider loading AP rounds into a Mosin or FAL. Both guns will kill the VIP with one shot to the torso. The Insurgent VIP’s Light Armor is considerably weaker, so weapon choice is irrelevant.
-> While the VIP has to run to an extraction point, camping the point itself may be tricky. Consider camping a side route to the objective; one you think the enemy VIP might take. The VIP’s teammates will definitely search the extraction points throughly for campers, but they might not inspect a side route as closely. Rather than camping the objective on Siege, you might want to camp a side street to the objective for an easier VIP kill. Of course, if the VIP takes a different route he may bypass you altogether.
-> If you kill a bunch of bad guys near one extraction point, the VIP will probably run to the other point. If you shoot down 5 or 6 guys near A on Market, the VIP is probably going to run to B. Keep this in mind.
Map-Specific Tactics (WIP)
Here’s the rundown on what typically happens on some of the Insurgency Ambush maps.
-> Be prepared! The Insurgents have a severe disadvantage here, as about 10-15 seconds in the Security team will rush your spawn, trapping you in unless your team is prepared.
-> As the VIP, you’ll want to have some teammates help defend you, because there are virtually no spots you can hide in as the VIP that can only be attacked from one direction.
-> Be wary of snipers! While there could be campers anywhere on the main street, there are three built-in sniper nests to look out for.
One of these is the three second-story windows on Alpha side:
Another one is the three second-story windows on Bravo side:
The last one is the boarded-up shop near the middle of the map:
-> Since the street is very exposed, get your teammates to smoke the street so you can safely cross.
-> As the Security team, if you’re one of the last few alive and trapping the VIP in spawn is impossible, head to Bravo. It’s typically chosen over Alpha.
-> To the left of the Insurgent spawn, there’s a massive amount of empty space that offers many good hiding spots to use as the VIP. Take advantage of it.
-> Rushing is a big part of this map. You can flank the Security by rushing multiple areas, from the middle of the map, to the street by Bravo if the enemies on it are eliminated. However, the Security team can (and probably will) also do the same to your team.
-> With all the available flank routes, you can pull some jukes as the VIP if you’re the last man alive.
-> Both Alpha and Bravo can be cleared from the back by going through the middle of the map and then coming around the rear. Alpha can even be cleared from above by going into the nearby ruined building.
-> You can blitzkrieg your way to victory if your team’s snipers can snipe out the enemies defending Bravo from across the street. Then, you can send in some teammates to finish clearing the point.
- If you want to try the above tactic, however, don’t sit on the street connected to Bravo as the VIP. You’re heavily exposed there, and you’ll probably get shot down. Just find a good spot to hide until Bravo is clear and then have some teammates escort you to the extraction point.
-> You want to start off by playing defensive, since many Insurgents rush on this map. They may attempt to flank through the bunker on Alpha side, the hill on Bravo side, or the river in between.
-> This is the room I refer to as the “Staircase of Death”:
This room is a slauhterhouse. Use extreme caution. Sprinting up those stairs will get you mowed down.
-> You can see the staircase a bit in the picture, but here’s another picture of it:
There’s almost always someone sitting on these stairs, waiting to wreck your face. This a bit of a difficult situation, because the stairs offer some cover from frags, and it’s difficult to shoot down any Insurgents before they kill you first. Flashbangs can work well, if your class can get them.
-> The doorway halfway up the Staircase of Death that takes you outside can also be shot into from multiple different spots. Underhand toss a smoke grenade right in front of the doorway to ruin the plans of Insurgent snipers.
-> If the bunker hasn’t been cleared of enemies, attempting to go Bravo side over the hill will probably lead you to an early grave. You’re best off trying to push the river in the middle of the map.
-> Be careful! On this map, you can and will get flanked from behind. Watch your back! There are a whole bunch of ways an enemy can get behind your lines, and once he does he can potentially take out your entire team!
-> A common strategy for either side is to rush through the middle of the map, roughly 20 seconds in. It can work well if you get there fast enough. Do keep in mind, however, that the Insurgents can get to and rush the middle road a bit faster than the Security can.
-> As the VIP, don’t worry too much about a good spot to hide. There’s plenty of them near your side of the map.
-> If you’re camping as the VIP, camping either in spawn or in the room above spawn is probably bad news bears, as both locations are virutally always checked, and the location can be easily camped by an Insurgent at range. I’ve killed the VIP with a sniper rifle by sitting prone about a hundred feet from spawn and waiting for him to pop out. There’s a good bit of open terrain between Security spawn and the nearest available cover, allowing for a sniper to take his time lining the shot up.
-> The points on this map can really suck. While you can attack Bravo from above, it puts you in a very exposed spot which you could get sniped from. Attacking Alpha from the right side road can also be a death trap if there’s snipers. You can also attack from in between, which is what often ends up happening, but then you can get shot from both Bravo and Alpha sides. Smokes can work well, however.
-> I highly recommend against rushing on this map as the VIP. It will never work unless your team works extremely quickly. Otherwise, you’re going to die by multiple flankers.
- This is because enemies can get behind your team in thirty seconds.
-> Due to the recent changes to the layout, it’s now easier for Insurgents to rush the train station on Alpha side and it’s easier for the Security to rush the beach on Bravo side.
-> A very good Insurgent sniper can potentially shoot your teammates from Insurgent spawn mere seconds into the round. Be careful about this. Getting wrecked from over 100 meters away seconds into the round really sucks.
-> The second-story blue and yellow bridges often play a key role in this map. Consider taking one of them if your team is pinned down or taken out while trying to escort you to Alpha, so you can try going to Bravo.
- If you want to go across one of the bridges and you have teammates left alive, have at least one at both ends of the bridge. Otherwise, just cross it by yourself.
- When crossing either bridge, you want to go prone unless all snipers have been taken out.
-> Alpha is typically easier to clear out than Bravo is, because you can only attack Bravo campers from one direction; they’re impossible to flank since there’s only one way to get there.
Final Remarks
In general, use common sense. Leading the team as the man that’s not supposed to get dead won’t help you much. Let your team do the work until your team goes down.
Thank you for reading my guide! If you have any questions or information you’d like added to this guide, let me know in the comments!